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Assembly Rooms Festival Operator

The City of Edinburgh Council

This public procurement record has 3 releases in its history.

Award

10 Sep 2025 at 01:00

PCS Notice - Website Contract Award Notice
Tender

02 Jun 2025 at 01:00

PCS Notice - Website Contract Notice
Planning

12 Feb 2025 at 00:00

PCS Notice - Website Prior Information Notice
Summary of the contracting process

The City of Edinburgh Council has awarded a Concession Contract for an Assembly Rooms Festival Operator. This contract, now at the contract award stage, has been granted to Assembly Festival Ltd, with the procurement process having been conducted through an open procedure. The selection process aimed to appoint an experienced Festival Operator capable of developing and managing a diverse programme of performances, along with handling box office, marketing, and production staffing requirements at The Assembly Rooms in Edinburgh. The contract, valued at £567,237 GBP, will commence operations from August 2026 for five years, with an optional extension of up to two further years as per the Council's discretion.

This tender provides significant opportunities for businesses in the events management and festival operations sectors. Those skilled in curating diverse performance programmes and handling comprehensive venue operations will find this contract align with their core competencies. Moreover, small and medium enterprises (SMEs) in the Edinburgh area with experience in similar cultural and entertainment events will likely find this an auspicious opportunity for expansion and partnership growth with a prominent regional authority. By engaging with a prestigious event such as this, businesses can harness growth avenues and elevate their market position within the cultural services sector.

How relevant is this notice?

Notice Information

Notice Title

Assembly Rooms Festival Operator

Notice Description

The City of Edinburgh Council (the "Council") awarded a Concession Contract for the Assembly Rooms Festival Operator. The Council's appointed an experienced Festival Operator to develop and manage a diverse programme of performances, provide all box office and marketing requirements, provide all production staff to support programming and operate the shows and build seating infrastructure within the venue. The Operator shall pay a fixed hire fee to the Council and the venue shall be subject to a damage deposit. It is expected that the new Contract shall operate from April 2026 for a period of five years with the option (at the Council's discretion) to extend for a further two 12-month periods.

Lot Information

Lot 1

Concession Contract for an experienced Festival Operator who will develop and manage a programme of performances on the full first floor of The Assembly Rooms during a five-week summer period in August of each year starting in 2026. Please refer to the Specification for details in full.

Renewal: This is a five year contract with the option to extend for up to a further two 12-months periods at the sole discretion of the Council.

Notice Details

Publication & Lifecycle

Open Contracting ID
ocds-r6ebe6-0000790432
Publication Source
Public Contracts Scotland
Latest Notice
https://www.publiccontractsscotland.gov.uk/search/show/search_view.aspx?ID=SEP538921
Current Stage
Award
All Stages
Planning, Tender, Award

Procurement Classification

Notice Type
PCS Notice - Website Contract Award Notice
Procurement Type
Standard
Procurement Category
Services
Procurement Method
Open
Procurement Method Details
Open procedure
Tender Suitability
Not specified
Awardee Scale
SME

Common Procurement Vocabulary (CPV)

CPV Divisions

79 - Business services: law, marketing, consulting, recruitment, printing and security

92 - Recreational, cultural and sporting services

CPV Codes

79952000 - Event services

79953000 - Festival organisation services

92312100 - Theatrical producers', singer groups', bands' and orchestras' entertainment services

92312110 - Theatrical producer entertainment services

Notice Value(s)

Tender Value
£504,000 £500K-£1M
Lots Value
Not specified
Awards Value
Not specified
Contracts Value
£567,237 £500K-£1M

Notice Dates

Publication Date
10 Sep 202511 months ago
Submission Deadline
2 Jul 2025Expired
Future Notice Date
1 Jun 2025Expired
Award Date
15 Aug 20251 years ago
Contract Period
Not specified - Not specified
Recurrence
Late 2031

Notice Status

Tender Status
Complete
Lots Status
Complete
Awards Status
Not Specified
Contracts Status
Active

Buyer & Supplier

Contracting Authority (Buyer)

Main Buyer
The City of Edinburgh Council
Contact Name
Available with D3 Tenders Premium →
Contact Email
Available with D3 Tenders Premium →
Contact Phone
Available with D3 Tenders Premium →

Buyer Location

Locality
EDINBURGH
Postcode
EH8 8BG
Postcode Area
Edinburgh
Country
Scotland
Major Region (ITL 1)
TLM Scotland
Basic Region (ITL 2)
TLM1 East Central Scotland
Small Region (ITL 3)
TLM13 City of Edinburgh
Delivery Location
TLM75 City of Edinburgh
Local Authority
City of Edinburgh
Electoral Ward
City Centre
Westminster Constituency
Edinburgh East and Musselburgh

Supplier Information

Number of Suppliers
1
Supplier Name

Assembly Festival Ltd

Further Information

Notice Documents

  • https://www.publiccontractsscotland.gov.uk/NoticeDownload/DownloadDocument.aspx?id=FEB523767&idx=1
    7th March 2025 - It would be appreciated if you could please complete and return this questionnaire by 14/04/2025.
  • https://www.publiccontractsscotland.gov.uk/search/show/search_view.aspx?ID=FEB523767
    Assembly Rooms Festival Operator - The purpose of this Prior Information Notice (PIN) is to inform the market of the intention of the City of Edinburgh Council (the "Council") to tender a Concession Contract for an experienced Events Producer or Organisation, to develop and manage a program of performances on the full first floor of The Assembly Rooms during a 5-week summer period in August of each year starting in 2026. The Council's aim is to appoint an experienced Event Producer or Organisation to develop and manage a diverse program of performances, provide all box office and marketing requirements, provide all production staff to support programme and operate the shows and build seating infrastructure within the venue to maximise pace and potential. Please note that the Assembly Rooms will provide all bars in the venue and retain all income generated from Bar sales. Assembly Rooms will also provide all Front of House and Security staff in line with Event Producer's requirements and all costs of staff to be met by the Event Producer. The estimated contract value is based on the rental fee paid to the Council, it does not include any anticipated staff cost. The street area outside the Assembly Rooms has been used as an additional performance and bar area during the Festival by previous hirers, the agreement to utilise this a separate discussion with the City of Edinburgh Council and as such is not part of this hire. It is expected that the new Contract shall operate from August 2026 for a period of five years with the option (at the Council's discretion) to extend for a further two 12-month periods.
  • https://www.publiccontractsscotland.gov.uk/search/show/search_view.aspx?ID=JUN531549
    Assembly Rooms Festival Operator - The City of Edinburgh Council (the "Council") requires a Concession Contract for an experienced Festival Operator to develop and manage a programme of performances on the full first floor of the Assembly Rooms during a five-week summer period in August of each year starting in 2026. The Council's aim is to appoint an experienced Festival Operator to develop and manage a diverse programme of performances, provide all box office and marketing requirements, provide all production staff to support programming and operate the shows and build seating infrastructure within the venue to maximise pace and potential. Please note that the Assembly Rooms will provide all bars in the venue and retain all income generated from Bar sales. The Assembly Rooms will also provide all Front of House and Security staff in line with Event Producer's requirements and all costs of staff to be met by the Event Producer. The estimated contract value is based on the rental fee paid to the Council, it does not include any anticipated staff cost. The external street area outside the Assembly Rooms has been used as an additional performance and bar area during the Festival by previous hirers, the agreement to utilise this a separate discussion with the Council and as such is not part of this hire. It is expected that the new Contract shall operate from August 2026 for a period of five years with the option (at the Council's discretion) to extend for a further two 12-month periods.
  • https://www.publiccontractsscotland.gov.uk/search/show/search_view.aspx?ID=SEP538921
    Assembly Rooms Festival Operator - The City of Edinburgh Council (the "Council") awarded a Concession Contract for the Assembly Rooms Festival Operator. The Council's appointed an experienced Festival Operator to develop and manage a diverse programme of performances, provide all box office and marketing requirements, provide all production staff to support programming and operate the shows and build seating infrastructure within the venue. The Operator shall pay a fixed hire fee to the Council and the venue shall be subject to a damage deposit. It is expected that the new Contract shall operate from April 2026 for a period of five years with the option (at the Council's discretion) to extend for a further two 12-month periods.

Open Contracting Data Standard (OCDS)

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